Bare100 Prompts
by hedwigmail
Summary: A series of approximately 500 word short stories written for the Bare100 on the BRPGF. R
1. Prompt List

**I decided that, just to make things a little clearer, I'd post the Prompt List as a chapter. They'll be a chapter of approximately 500 words a piece for each number there. In short, there will eventually be 101 chapters (including this one). Have fun!**

**BRPGF Prompt List**

001. Beginnings.  
002. Middles.  
003. Ends.  
004. Insides.  
005. Outsides.  
006. Hours.  
007. Days.  
008. Weeks.  
009. Months.  
010. Years.  
011. Red.  
012. Orange.  
013. Yellow.  
014. Green.  
015. Blue.  
016. Purple.  
017. Black.  
018. White.  
019. Sweet.  
020. Sour.  
021. Friends.  
022. Enemies.  
023. Lovers.  
024. Family.  
025. Strangers.  
026. Teammates.  
027. Parents.  
028. Children.  
029. Birth.  
030. Death.  
031. Sunrise.  
032. Sunset.  
033. Too Much.  
034. Not Enough.  
035. Smell.  
036. Sound.  
037. Touch.  
038. Sight.  
039. Taste.  
040. Everlasting.  
041. Temporary.  
042. Triangle.  
043. Square.  
044. Circle.  
045. Mind.  
046. Body.  
047. Heart.  
048. Spirit.  
049. Water.  
050. Fire.  
051. Earth.  
052. Air.  
053. Breakfast.  
054. Lunch.  
055. Dinner.  
056. Food.  
057. Drink.  
058. Winter.  
059. Spring.  
060. Summer.  
061. Fall.  
062. Sun.  
063. Moon.  
064. Star.  
065. Rain.  
066. Snow.  
067. Lightening/Thunder  
068. Sunny.  
069. Beautiful.  
070. Plain.  
071. Ugly.  
072. Broken.  
073. Fixed.  
074. Light.  
075. Dark.  
076. Who?  
077. What?  
078. Where?  
079. When?  
080. Why?  
081. How?  
082. If.  
083. Choices.  
084. Work.  
085. School.  
086. Home.  
087. Leading.  
088. Following.  
089. Watching.  
090. Birthday.  
091. Christmas.  
092. Thanksgiving.  
093. Independence.  
094. New Year.  
095. Lost.  
096. Found.  
097. Smart.  
098. Dull.  
099. Love.  
100. Hate.


	2. 048 Spirit

Jason looked down at his feet. Or, rather, what used to have been his feet. At the moment, they didn't particularly look normal. For some odd reason, his feet looked… transparent?

He looked up, taking in his surroundings. There was no one… Nothing. Nothing but the crisp, almost freshly painted white walls, ceiling and floor. He looked back down at himself, touching his fingers to his abdomen, then his face. He was dressed in white, too. His body felt the same, but this was very new, unfamiliar turf to him. _Looks like we're not on the b-ball court anymore, Toto…_

Jason tried to think back to the last thing he could remember; anything to tell him why he could have gotten here would have greatly appreciated at the moment.

The first thing that came to him was the thought of Peter and himself, backstage. Peter had kept referring to their plan to kiss at curtain call and watch all hell break loose as they dove head first out of the closet. Jason had been uncomfortable with it, yes, but there was something after that…

Then Jason remembered the vile Lucas had given him and Act II of Romeo and Juliet. He had stumbled, grasping for Nadia and clasped into the arms of Peter, coughing. He had faintly heard Peter crying out his name along with nonsense words and the occasional annunciation of the word that still made him tense up, "love."

The rest came in flashes. Flashing lights; Peter next to him in an ambulance; Peter's hand in his; then the blinding lights of the ER. Oddly enough, his memory wouldn't track any further than that.

God, had he… overdosed? After all those wasted Health classes with the nuns preaching safe, clean lives, had he actually ODed? How did that happen? Did he mean to? No… Well, of course he didn't. Or, at least, he thought he didn't.

I didn't, right? Please tell me I didn't…

Suddenly, he was pulled from the white, definitely hellish room into a just as white, but possibly more sterile hospital room. He landed at the foot of a hospital bed, recognizing the person in it with a bit of a shock. It was… him. Or, his body, anyway. To his body's right, Peter knelt, his laced with his own right hand's. Peter's forehead was against their hands, he face hidden from view. Jason could tell at a glance that he was or had been crying. He didn't know how, he just knew…

In the hallway, Jason could hear a doctor solemnly telling someone that Jason would not be waking up. He heard a gasp and a strangled cry from what must been Nadia, and Peter's crying became more obvious as his breathing sped up.

"Peter?" he whispered cautiously, almost already knowing he wouldn't, couldn't hear him. Peter didn't move. "Peter… I'm… I'm so sorry. I wish I could just take it all back…" he whispered louder, wiping tears from the corners of his eyes. "God, please forgive me…"


	3. 006 Hours

Jason glanced at the clock. 4 hour. Four hours since he broke up with Peter… And god, it felt like weeks. He wiped away tears that were threatening to fall from his eyes, looking to the wall to recompose himself. He straightened up and blinked a bit before he got back to packing.

Four and a half hours since he left Peter. One since Peter left, quite literally. At least 168 hours til he would see him again, after spring break, which he knew would be hell. At very least 168 hours til he could talk to him again… Could grab him and just apologize for everything. Kiss all the pain, the sorrow, the stupidity of this last stunt away and just hold him. God, Jason needed to hold Peter now. He needed to feel okay, feel like something, anything in his life was perfect.

That's what Peter had always been. Perfection. Nothing could be wrong when he was with Peter. That was why _they_ couldn't be wrong… Because it was so _right. _At least, that was what he had thought. Up until recently, that worked. It made sense… Well, it had never made complete sense, but what little gaps there were, Peter filled in quickly. He'd always pushed, but now he just… He pushed too far.

_I can't come out yet… Not now…_ he thought as he folded a pair of basketball shorts and stuffed them into his smallest suitcase. _Not ever… I mean, I could handle the talk. It could always be brushed off, be… kissed away. But this… Spring break? With him? To talk to his mother about us? How would that work? She'd tell everyone… My career, my LIFE would be OVER. Completely._

He sat down, glancing at the digital clock again. How to fill the two hours before his parent's housekeeper was set to arrive? She'd be ontime, not like all the other years of having one of _them_ try to make a parental appearance and pick us up. It had always been disastrous. They'd be two hours late, at least. Actually, in Sophomore year, Daddy dearest had shown up a full day late. Oh, had that been fun to explain to the sisters…

He stood up, again, shoving his basketball gear into a bag, not really caring about neatness at the moment. His mind wandered back to Peter, wondering what he could be doing at the moment.

No. This is why you broke up with him… You can't think like this anymore. You can't spend time thinking about other boys… No matter how perfect they seem-… Are. Think about Ivy… Her hair, her legs…Jason sighed, not getting into it at all. Besides, even if you could take Peter back, he'd never let you. He definitely thinks you're a worthless piece of shit right now, Jason.

He stopped, staring at Peter's bed, thinking of what they'd done there just last night. How he'd never get to do that again.

He looked to the door as someone knocked, seeing Ivy standing there. "Oh… Hi."


	4. 065 Rain

Jason picked up his book, prepared to study through the night. Dinner had just finished and he needed to make use of the time he had before Peter came in. He opened the book to the assigned passage and began reading.

Pyroclastic and lava flow seems to have been the main causes of death in the tragedy of Mt. Vesuveus. Many hundreds of people lost their lives when th-

The door slammed open, then closed as Peter ran in, jumping on his bed, throwing aside the rest of the textbooks. "It's raining…" He said, with a big smile.

Jason looked at him suspiciously. "How much?"

"It's POURING!" Peter replied, his smile growing wider, "Almost… dangerous."

He sighed, moving his textbooks back into his bag. "Okay… If it's really 'pouring.'" Jason got off the bed and headed for the door, peeking his head out the door.

Peter crept behind him, nudging him into the hallway and dragging him out the dorm's front door, out into the pouring rain. It thundered overhead as Peter sprinted out, his arms outstretched, welcoming every drop.

Jason laughed, watching Peter spin. He glanced around, making sure they were alone before running out to join him. This was why Peter loved rain so much. They could be outside, together. When it was pouring, no one else was outside and it was nearly impossible to see anything but rain from any of the windows.

He motioned for Peter to follow him further out, taking his hand only when he knew they were safe.

Peter ran with Jason, laughing and smiling. He looked back at the school; _he_ could hardly see it anymore; and around them to make sure they were still alone, before pulling Jason to him and kissing him lightly but forcefully, on the lips.

Jason's whole body tensed up as Peter kissed him. They were in public, they shouldn't be doing this…

But that thought faded away as Peter pulled away. Jason could see the rain drops on his eyelashes. For Christ's sake, it was raining so hard Peter's eyelashes were soaked. Like he said, it was dangerous… Definitely too dangerous for anyone to be outside, right?

He pulled Peter closer to him, kissing his lips and then his forehead. He rested his chin on his head, smiling softly.

"God, I love the rain…" Peter whispered up to him, earning a wider smile from Jason.

"Mmm… Me too." He looked down and kissed Peter's head again, before leaning back and running his hands through Peter's drenched hair. They had done this a million times, but every time just seemed to get better.

Peter looked up into Jason's eyes. Those eyes changed when they were alone. They went from lonely to warm… to full. To complete. They made Peter feel complete, and Jason could just tell. "The rain can't hurt me now…" He giggled.

Jason looked back at him and locked eyes with Peter's gorgeous brown ones. He laughed. "You and your musicals…"


	5. 073 Fixed

"There ya go," said Jason, climbing out from under the desk, "Fixed."

"Thank you, so much." Ivy replied, kneeling down and batting her eyelashes at him. "Think it'll stay?"

"It should." He replied, standing up and looking around the dorm. He was in here a lot, between Nads and the ever-persistent Ivy, here. He looked around; still no sign of his sister. "Hey, where is Nadia, anyway?"

Ivy rolled her eyes to the ceiling. "Oh, you know… Around." She moved back, trying to think of a way to change topics. "So, how did you know how to fix my desk, anyway? Where'd ya learn that?"

Jason smirked at her. "No where, really. Just a bit of common sense paired up with the fact that I've always been good with my hands." _Just ask Peter…_

Ivy smirked back at him as he continued, "How did your desk get this fucked up anyway? I mean, you had a shitload of nails out of that thing…" He winked at Ivy, knowingly.

She winked back. "Hmmm… I don't know. Maybe Nadia sat on it?"

Jason groaned, not really appreciating the context that Nadia came up in, but keeping quiet, none-the-less. He looked around the room a few more times before sighing. He was out of topics for small talk and, frankly, out of reasons as to why he was here. "Well, Ivy… I better be off now. See ya in class or Mass or something."

"Oh… okay." Ivy replied, her smile faltering slightly, "Bye, then."

Jason backed through the door then waved a good-bye before he closed it. He stood there for a second, deciding to go back to his and Peter's dorm. As he began walking away, he heard a muffled scream and then the word "shit!" come from what was definitely Ivy in her dorm. He chuckled slightly.

As he walked back to his dorm, he spotted Nadia and her cello. "Hey." He said, nudging his head to the string instrument, "What were you doing?"

"Practicing…" Nadia smirked. "I joined a band, did ya hear? They just need to stop hanging out with Peter and Matt. I know that they're 'bestest buddies,'" she squealed, uncharacteristically, "Because our band's name is the 'Rock and Roll to Save A Soul Mission.' I fear for my life and sanity. They keep using words like 'jesulicious' and 'jesucentric'." She shivered, "God, Jase, save me!"

Jason laughed and pinched her cheek. "Sorry, Nads, but you got yourself into this string quartet from hell. You can get yourself out of it."

"I don't know if I can…" she groaned, continuing down the hallway.

Jason proceeded towards his dorm, smiling widely. This day was getting more and more amusing by the second! Ivy tries to seduce me by asking me to fix her desk, of all things, and Nadia joined a 'jesufied' band. Only one thing could make it more interesting. With any luck, Peter would need help running lines when he got back.


	6. 010 Years

He smiled at Nadia, holding up three fingers and counting down, very slowly. She smiled back and pushed him, instead motioning for them both to just blow them out. He smirked back and complied, letting Nadia blow out seven of the 13 candles.

"Look here!" Their nanny said, coming into the dining room, brandishing her new digital camera. It was the new upgrade from their old camera, given to Nancy just so their parents would never have an empty space in the scrapbook of their perfect children's perfect lives. The twins looked up and posed for Nancy, knowing she needed the holiday bonus that came with 50 happy photos.

Nancy snapped a few more pictures before going in to get a server and knife for the yellow cake.

Jason and Nadia looked down at the cake, deciding how big each piece was going to be. Five pieces, if they saved some for their parents when they got home. If they got home.

Nancy re-entered the dining room with the needed utensils and an enormous smile. She always tried to make birthdays as nice as possible, Jason thought, smiling back. She's no substitute for the real thing, though. A real party with… real parents.

He looked to Nadia, knowing she was feeling the same thing. Dad was "close" to him and Mom was "close" to her. It had always been that way, and it probably would always be.

Nadia took the knife from Nancy and cut the pieces, leaving two wimpy slivers for their parents, who didn't deserve much more.

It had happened again. It was so obvious this time, as it had been every other. They had forgotten. They had forgotten that it was their, their only children, their twins'; birthday. It was the same day every year. An annual reminder of the hell their mom had gone through to bring these kids into the world, and they still forgot.

Or they ignored. Jason frowned, watching Nadia finish cutting then serving the cake. They each had a secretary. Isn't this the kind of thing they were supposed to keep track of? Maybe they knew, they just chose not to pay attention, not to come. Maybe they didn't care about them.

Jason always knew that he and Nadia weren't their first priority but… not caring?

He hid his frown from Nadia as he accepted the cake, not wanting to pull her down with him. It was her birthday, after all.

But she noticed. "You thinking…?" She trailed off, but raised her eyebrows in a way that said 'parents.' He nodded as she continued. "So'kay. They forget every year. It's normal now. Our parents might never know when our birthday is, but they're sure gonna remember someday." They have to. "Maybe next year?"

"Maybe they'll come over one year and just be off by a few hours?"

"Whatever it is, they're gonna remember next year. They can't not. It's just about scientifically impossible." Nadia smiled, confident and happy.

They can't miss it again…


	7. 061 Fall

_Who's bright idea was it to have a rock climbing field trip for a first year geology class? We're getting an intro about rocks, not about climbing them…_ Jason grumbled to himself as he stepped up into another foothold and handhold. "This is so pointless."

"Yeah…" replied Peter, from his right at his feet. "Plus this is really hard to do. What the hell?"

Jason paused and let go of the wall with one hand to lean down and watch Peter. "Careful, now. You don't want to… fall."

He had spoken a bit too late. Peter lost his hold on the "pegs" and slipped off the wall, falling towards the ground.

"Shit!" Jason watched him fall, wide-eyed and scared, as he grabbed the wall again and prepared himself to slowly descend after him.

For some reason, while watching Peter fall, he saw bits of _his_ life flash before his eyes. Not all of it, just the bits that really involved Peter.

Like the first time they met. Jason walked into his new dorm followed by Nadia. They had just been to her dorm and Ivy, Nad's new roommate, seemed nice enough. Jason walked into his and his dorm mate's new bedroom and had to find his breath again. Standing there looking right at him was the cutest boy Jason had ever seen. How did he manage to… be… That? He was just… amazing. The boy walked over and introduced himself as Peter, and Jason suddenly found himself loving a name he'd never really cared for before.

And at the start of this year when Peter had walked into their dorm while he was unpacking; Jason hadn't even seen him, but he knew he was there. The hair on the back of his neck stood up. He'd turned around and had had to contain another gasp. Peter had changed. Peter was gorgeous, and… there was not other way to put it… hott? He was still adorable and cute underneath, but he had shorter, slight spiked hair, was tan, tall and… his eyes… those eyes… had more depth.

And so many little moments in between. Jason had been so confused when they all happened, but now he was too scared to be disgusted at himself. Peter might die…

That fear, that shock, that… terror of never telling Peter about his… not-so-platonic feelings for him, prompted another memory. But it wasn't a memory… it had never happened. It was more of a… vision. An idea. It was the absolute worst idea he had ever had.

Nadia, Ivy and Matt filed by a coffin and glanced in, placing roses on the pew in front of it. Slowly, Jason walked towards the coffin and apprehensively looked inside.

There in the coffin was Peter. He looked… peaceful. At rest.

As Jason looked down at him, he felt his heart being ripped out of his chest. Now he was dying, too. And he welcomed it. Peter was dead; he wanted to die. He wanted to be with Peter.

Jason landed with his feet on the mat a few seconds after Peter's harness caught him. Peter was being unbuckled from it when he looked up and saw Jason.

"Hey! Why'd you come down?"

"Just… Be careful, man…" Jason replied, not having a real answer.

_Oh, god, what was he going to do with himself?_


	8. 016 Purple

"Jason! Nadia! Come on, we're got a surprise for you!" Their father's booming voice rang up the stairs. The two twins froze on instinct, hearing that voice. They were all too used to it being bad news. The last time they had heard his voice that loud, Jason had misspelled tee-shirt and banana on a test. Sure, it was Kindergarten and the tests meant nothing, but their father decided it was a sign of mediocrity in Jason's future and he wouldn't stand for that. No son of his would be normal.

So, by now it was natural that their initial reaction to their dad's voice would be to cringe and tense up. They stood there for a moment before Jason turned to Nadia, smiling and holding back a giggle at the situation. She giggled in response and, soon enough, the two new five-year-olds were leaning against each other and falling back onto the bottom bunk of their bunk bed.

After a minute, Jason's giggles died down and he sat up, tugging on the hem of his shirt nervously. "Com'mon Nads!" He turned to face her with an eager smile. "Daddy gots a surprise!" He grabbed Nadia's hand as she jumped off the bed. He dragged her down the hallway and the stairs, his giggles join her's.

By the time they reached the kitchen, their laughter had ceased; amusement replaced fear of their father's ever-present glare. "Why did that take you so long?"

"Sorry Daddy…" They mumbled together, looking down at their shoes.

He turned to the window, looking out over their backyard. "If you two can manage to control yourself for your birthday, I have a little present for you." He turned and smiled, such a foreign thing that it made him look menacing.

Nadia stepped back, knowing this gift for "them" was intended for Jason, but he grabbed her by the hand and pulled her to stand even with him, He discreetly shot her a "twin look" that somehow said "he said both of us." She smiled back at him in agreement.

Their father turned away, towards one of the many doors that led into the kitchen. "Come in!" he called and soon, moving jovially down the hall, his weight shifting from left to right with each step, came the one and only purple dinosaur.

At the sight of Barney, Jason's jaw dropped. This was the star of the only TV show he had ever left the room for of his own accord. The dinosaur was in his house. The dinosaur was going to kill him…

He stood, gaping for a second before he felt a squeeze on his hand; a signal from Nadia that it was okay to be afraid. She was the only person who had ever given him that okay.

Slowly, Jason moved to step behind Nadia, peeking over her shoulder while shaking. He tried to remain hidden from the obviously carnivorous dinosaur, watching his open mouth with fear. It was ready to eat them.

"Hiya, kids!" he said in a voice that although he thought it was happy and welcoming, Jason heard it as booming and evil.

Jason screamed, running down the hallway and into a coat closet.

He soon heard the door open and saw Nadia step inside and sit down next to him, slipping her hand into his.

Cradle to the grave.


	9. 086 Home, 044 Circle and 046 Body

"Hey!" Lucas called, as I walked through the door after Peter, "Welcome home!"

I smirked and walked over to him, offering a hand for our patented 'Lucson' handshake. He this was as close to home as it got. Well, closer than the "real" thing, but not nearly as close as good ol' dorm 457.

Lucas accepted quickly and performed the hand motions much better than anyone else ever could in his current state. Although, they could be partially credited to the fact that we had been high when we created it…

"So…" Peter asked, coming up next to me, "Time for our customary 'End of Break' bash?"

Lucas stared him down slightly. "End of break? Yes. Bash? No." He put down his beer after taking another quick swig from it. "Party? Hell yes."

I laughed at Peter's confused expression and followed Lucas as he gathered the small group into a circle and asked them what needed to be done to 'get this shit rolling.'

Peter, who had just found Rory's brownies and was currently on his third, looked confused for a moment before replying. "Push it?" he paused, finishing a brownie. "Why do you want shit to roll?"

I let my head fall into my hands as Nadia patted him on the head from her spot next to him. High Peter. This was going to be a long night.

Lucas just sniggered. "No reason."

Ivy spoke up after relinquishing her possession of a joint to Tanya. "We could play Truth or Dare…" The circle reluctantly agreed, having no other ideas. "Good, 'cuz I have an idea. Jason, truth or dare?"

Shit, she has a glimmer in her eye… "Uh… Dare." I replied, smiling at her and hoping she'd pity me at least a little.

Ivy just smiled wider. "Yes! This'll be amusing." Fuck. That's not good. "Jason, I dare you…" She looked around the circle and room, obviously pretending to look for something to dare me to do.

"Damn it, Ivy, out with it!" I yelled, forcing myself to use a joking tone and laugh a bit.

"Fiiiiine," she sighed, smiling back at me flirtaeously. Not the time. "Jase, I dare you to…" She trailed off, looking up at the ceiling (and making me want to stab her with a cross), before she stared me in the eyes, an evil grin taking over her face. "… Kiss Peter."

My head turned itself in Peter's direction, wearing a wide-eyed expression. He was still so engulfed in his brownie situation that it took his brain a full 5 seconds to process this very important tidbit. His head snapped up and he stared at Ivy before he turned to me, quite a bit more sober.

"W… What!?!" I asked, glancing back to Ivy and then back at Peter, horrified. "K… Kiss… Peter1!?!"

"For two minutes."

My head immediately swiveled back to Ivy. "Two minutes!?!"

Lucas was rolling on the floor, laughing. "Jesus, Ivy, two minutes? How do you want them to fill two minutes? Tongue?"

Nadia's face had paled and she was looking between Peter and Jason, a confused expression on her face. "Shit, Ivy, why do you want to see that?"

"Y-… Yeah…" Peter echoed, his eyes still glued to mine. "Why would you want to s-see that?"

"Cuz it'll be funny!" Ivy giggled, grabbing a few more brownies from the tin Rory was passing around. "Why are you guys so worried about this? It's just a kiss. Not like it means anything. It's not like you guys have to go fuck after this," she giggled again, finishing off a brownie.

Despite myself, I smirked. Well, we don't have to…

Lucas sat up, finally gaining some control over himself. "Calm down, it's no big deal. Dude, I'll kiss Peter."

Peter jerked back to life and stared at Lucas with a very clear 'what the fuck' expression on his face. "I… Uh…" He wiped his forehead with his sleeve, nervously. "Lucas, honestly, I'd rather kiss Jason."

Lucas put his hand over his mouth in mock hurt and leaned into Tanya for support. She gasped and fanned him overdramatically, raising her eyebrow at Peter. "Suit yourself."

I stared at Peter, waiting for him to say something, anything to cover that up. He did not just say that…

Peter tried to continue, hurriedly, tripping over words like Lucas in gym. "I… well… I meant… I mean… I just… know Jason better, that's all. I'm more comfortable with him. And… well-"

"Save it," Ivy replied, looking around the room while munching on a brownie, stop the excuses and just kiss him, damn it! It'll be done in a few minutes it's not like anything will happen.

I can't be too sure of that… "Fuck. Okay, Peter, let's just get this over with…" I slowly stood up to take the usual dare spot in the center of the circle. "Peter?"

Peter looked up to me, unsure. "Damn it, Peter," Ivy said, growing impatient, "If you don't get up there, I'm changing the dare to 7 minutes in heaven."

Lucas sat up, having long abandoned his state of shock. "What, do you want them to be gay?"

I swallowed, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable "Peter!?" I asked, motioning for him to come, but he was already up, slowly making his way to the center.

Once he was in front of me, I looking into his eyes, trying to convey all the warning bells in my head into his. He seemed to know. "Ready?" He nodded silently and leaned in a bit, closing his eyes.

I exhaled and closed the rest of the space between our lips.

My eyes fluttered shut as I already began to feel Peter's effect on me.

He was like a drug, albeit, a really good and safe one. The moment our lips touched, I felt a warmth spread through me, out to my fingertips. The hair on my arms stood up and, despite the heat coursing through me, chills ran down my spine. My body took over my mind and let a few of my animal instinct run wild, letting me lean in and deepen the kiss, almost forgetting our audience.

Almost. My brain wouldn't let me fully remember onlookers, but it managed to keep my body in tabs enough that I didn't rip off Peter's shirt, thank god.

Peter seemed to have gotten lost, too, as he responded quickly, deepening it more and stepping closer.

I managed to keep myself from stepping or pulling Peter any closer, but it was hard. I actually somehow managed to keep my hands down for the duration of the kiss, although I could keep myself from attempting to discreetly slip in some tongue that Peter happily reacted to unnoticeably.

Somewhere in the back of my mind, I heard a bewildered voice say "Time," and I stepped back from Peter, breaking the kiss. Slowly Peter and I took our places in the circle again, looking around it for reactions.

After a long period of silence, a wide-eyed Rory finally spoke. "What the hell was that?"

""Yeah…" replied an unusually quiet Lucas. "I was kidding about the tongue thing…"

Ivy turned to me, looking a bit shocked… "What the…?"

I forced a believable laugh, surveying the look of pure astonishment in the circle. "It was all an act… Nothing more." I looked back to Ivy, adding a smile to the act. "What, you thought that was real?" Another laugh. "All an act…" I trailed off, locking eyes with Ivy. "Well, you said you wanted it to be amusing. We tried. Right, Peter?"

Peter caught my eye and although he was smiling, I could sense the confusion and a small amount of pain in his eyes. I apologized as profusely as I could visually, begging for forgiveness with my eyes. Doesn't he know this has to be done?

"Yeah…" Peter replied slowly before he paused, cleared his head and continued. "Yeah! You guys, it was a joke." He laughed too, flashing his heart-melting smile around the room. "Totally fake. What, you actually thought we were…? No way…" He caught my eye again, wearing an unreadable expression.

Thank you, god, for creating such amazing altar boys… I turned back to Ivy, grazing her cheek with my thumb, flirtaeously. "One big joke, just for you…"

She smiled up at me and batted her eyelashes in an attempt to be sexy directed at the wrong person. In fact, it almost made me sick in comparison to every little thing Peter does. "Well, thanks, then, for that little display."

"No problem. It was all just a game…" I replied, looking over Ivy's shoulder and locking eyes with Peter to emphasize the word 'game.'

Unbeknownst to me, Nadia saw it too.

Lucas cleared his throat. "Well, Jason, you're next."

I scanned the room as I fished for a person and a dare and decided to have a little fun with Lucas and Peter. "Lucas, truth or dare?"

"Truth." He smirked, sticking out his tongue.

"Why are you so terrible at baseball?"


End file.
